Igbo Funeral Ceremonies
By: Valerie Pardon
Chapter 13- pages 120-125
This is the traditional Igbo mask kept by the oldest person in the village. It is part of the funeral celebration and is passed down from generation to generation.
This is the traditional Igbo mask kept by the oldest person in the village. It is part of the funeral celebration and is passed down from generation to generation.

- Igbo funerals are extremely complex
-Funerals are performed 2 weeks after the person dies
-You can’t announce the entry of individuals or groups-penalty #300.00 (Three Hundred Naira)
-You can’t trade at funerals-penalty #100.00(One Hundred Naira)
-Only one cow may be given to the bereaved family-penalty #500.00(Five Hundred Naira)
- All wine and gift carrying possessions are banished-penalty #100.00 (One Hundred Nai
-Gifts per person is two cartons of beer, a few yards of cloth, and two crates of soft drinks
-If not performed after 2 weeks you get a penalty of #500.00 (Five hundred Naire)
-In funerals there is a mask kept by the oldest
This is an Igbo woman with her 2 baby twins. In the Igbo tribe twins are not accepted so they are killed and do not get a funeral ceremony.
This is an Igbo woman with her 2 baby twins. In the Igbo tribe twins are not accepted so they are killed and do not get a funeral ceremony.
person in the village which is part of the funeral celebration

-Mirrors in the mask are thought to have powers that deflect evil spirits
-The mirrors also represent the powerful spiritual, enforced law, order within the community, and righteous path that the dead will follow to the spirit world
-Women who die in labor, people who commit suicide, and children who die before they have teeth get a ceremony of being thrown in a bush

-Igbo kill people that might be considered shameful to their tribe
- Twins are put to death
- Babies born feet first, boys with only one testicle, and lepers are all killed and their bodies are thrown away in secrecy


Work Citied:

1.
Davis, Amanda. "An Igbo Masquerade." Web. 30 Oct. 2009. http://www.clarku.edu/~jborgatt/discover/1amdavis/amdavis.htm.
2. "Igbo Funeral Ceremony Of Oraifite." Oraifite. SamSCO Networks, 2001. Web. 30 Oct. 2009. http://www.oraifite.com/culture-and-traditions/funeral-ceremony.php.
3. Slattery, Katharine. "Religion and the Igbo People." 15 Aug. 2001. Web. 30 Oct. 2009. http://www.qub.ac.uk/schools/SchoolofEnglish/imperial/nigeria/religion.htm
4. http://www.clarku.edu/~jborgatt/discover/1amdavis/DSC00175a.JPG
5. http://www.randafricanart.com/images/Yoruba_woman_holding_twins.jpg
External link:
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Igbo_Peopl












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